Like most of Sideshow's larger products, this polystone piece (actually two pieces, as the block and the base are separate) is snuggled between two huge slabs of styrofoam, then boxed, bagged, and boxed again. My box didn't have any dings despite a notoriously ruthless delivery guy, so I'm very pleased the packaging wasn't stress tested. Removing the goods was also easy and straightforward, which is always important to me because in the past I have dumped stuff out while trying to get through the tangles of tape and strips of cardboard.

The backside of the carbonite block and the bottom and backside of the base are covered in a soft, black felt - standard for Sideshow but always something I'm very thankful for. The block is about 12 inches tall, 5 and a half wide, and about an inch deep. The base is about 18 inches tall, 13 inches wide, and 10 inches deep. Overall, a very large piece with enough room for a Sideshow figure (and stand) to stand on the step.

The carbonite looks beautiful. Han looks screen accurate and the side panels on the carbonite block are very crisp, as well. Depending on the photographer and whether or not flash is used, the block will either look a flat charcoal or almost glossy... The best I can tell is the color and sheen are accurate to the original prop.

The base itself is a pretty good representation of the wall in Jabba's palace, although scaled down a tad. The grating in the floor looks good, the control panel on the wall is a little flat but the important thing here is the base doesn't take away from the focal point.

The base has a peg at the top where the carbonite slips on - I believe there is also a magnet, but the peg has a firm enough hold that I can't tell for certain. The floating effect works, it looks like it does in the movie.

My main complaints are the price and the lack of lights. Had Sideshow allowed lights under the grating, or even in the block itself, this piece would be in a league of its own and a great value. It still has a presence without, but the lights would have really made this product a big hit... At a whopping $200, this thing should give us more, and the edition size of 2,000 is pretty high, too.

All that said, if you've got Jabba and his throne, then this thing is really a must have. If not, then I'd wait it out and pick it up on the secondary for much cheaper. Already, in fact, some dealers are letting these go for $30-40 less than Sideshow. That's much more reasonable. The bottom line: While I'm being gradually priced out of Sideshow Collectibles, this is still a great addition to my collection, I'm happy I've got it.

I've been working on a web layout... the client is absolutely pleased, but at the same time, is having me make frequent adjustments that are gradually becoming more and more tacky. I have tried to strike compromises for the sake of the integrity of the design and the overall appearance of his business, but the results are mixed.

So... my neighbor has rented out her house, the one almost directly behind us, to a bunch of drunk ****tards. There's nothing we can do about it, but I think a lot of us are about on our last nerve about a couple of things. The first is that they are loud and obscene - on Easter Sunday, they were outside talking about "shooting a ************"... I like watching birds, when I get off of work, and I'm so sick and tired of hearing these pretend gangsters talk about who they are going to murder. The second issue is their dog. I've never seen the dog, but it sounds like it must be in pain or something, because it is barking almost constantly... This, I feel, I can do something about.

Have you guys ever written a complaint to Animal Control over a neighbor's dog barking? My assumption is that almost everyone has had to deal with this at some point or another - what did you guys do to resolve it? Anything?

I realized today that in the Star Wars Universe, I can only think of two instances where a wound is not instantly cauterized by a lightsaber strike. Old Ben left Panda Baba in a bloody mess, and a mist of blood was clearly visible when Young Obi-Wan halfed Darth Maul. The constant here is Kenobi - is there anyway to write these two cases off as a particular gift Kenobi has?

I'm slowly closing in on completing my loose Vintage collection. If any of you guys happen to have a spare of one of these, shoot me a price and I'll get back with you. I'm scrounging around eBay, but I'd much rather do business with what I consider to be my "family" here at JD. One very important note is that I don't really care about the condition of the figure, or if it's complete - as long as the figure is somewhat decent, I'll love it for it's "played with" charm.

I've had a lot of support from members of this community, emotionally and financially, and I really appreciate all of you who have helped me grow as an artist and as a person. As much as I hate it, because I'm still very self-conscious, I'm beginning to focus more on promoting my work, and so I figured here at JediDefender would be a good place to start.

I'm available for commissions, so just contact me if there's something you've got in mind.

PRE-ORDER 'Out Of Character' (St. Louis Cardinals, 2006 World Series) by Rick Rush*I'm the Serigraph Artist for Rick Rush, so while this is his artwork, I'll be working with him on recreating his art on the screen positives and assisting in the physical printing and racking each of the SerigraphsEdition of 300, Numbered and Signed by Rick Rush / Size will be in the 22 x 33 rangeSerigraph (Silk Screened Print): $650 (Retail will be $800 once these prints are finished)Shipping (Mailed Flat) : FREE

'Right For The Roses' (Texas Longhorns, 2005 NCAA Champions) by Rick Rush*This was my first project as Serigraph Artist for Rick Rush. I helped him in recreating his art on the screen positives and assisted in the physical printing and racking each of the Serigraphs...Edition of 300, Numbered and Signed by Rick Rush / 29 1/2 X 37Serigraph (Silk Screened Print): $800Shipping (Mailed Flat) : $15

I haven't contributed any work in a while, but hopefully I'll have some more Star Wars themed pieces to submit soon... This is a rough sketch of Lando Calrissian in his skiff gear. I'm happy with how this looks, overall... being a loose sketch, it has that rugged look to it, so its complimentary to the subject matter. Overall size is 5 1/2 inches x 6 1/2 inches, and it's pencil on your standard tracing paper.